The job system is a layer over the existing Armory class system and is actually a series of gemstones that you equip while on specific classes. The jobs themselves don't have levels, they simply become the level of the main class that supports it. Paladin is based off Gladiator, Black Mage off Thaumaturge etc. XP gained while equipped with a job stone goes toward progression of said main class.

The cool thing with jobs is that their ability progression (along with their AF) is quest based. The quests themselves have a main class level requirement. Which basically means you don't have to level a whole other class. When the patch hit, I was level 50 Lancer. Since I also had level 30 Pugilist, I met the requirements for the Dragoon job quest (30LNC/15PUG) and was able to get that job stone. Once you receive the job you get one signature job-specific ability that cannot be used with any other class or job. For Dragoon, you get Jump. You get follow-up quests to that storyline every 5 levels - 35, 40, 45 and 50 respectively. Each quest rewards you with a new job specific ability/weaponskill. When you reach level 45, you begin picking up your AF as parts of the 45 and 50 quests.

One thing to know about jobs is that in many cases they are superior to classes with two very very important exceptions.

1) It limits you to the abilities of the two prerequisite classes for the job.2) The number of ability slots you have is cut in half.

While this may not seem too bad, there's some instances where you miss out on some really key skills when you go on a job vs on a class. PLD for example has zero access to useful skills like Invigorate (TP over time), Second Wind (45 second free heal - TP cost removed this patch) and Featherfoot (Dodge that returns a small amount of MP). Instead you're locked to Conjurer and Gladiator abilites only - which with the revamp to skills from 1.19 - it basically gives you Cure and Protect as your only useful CON skills. So right now, PLDs either need to travel with a pocket BRD or bring stacks of high ethers.

Some jobs, like WAR, MNK and DRG completely destroy their corresponding classes. DRG gives up some survivability for an insane boost in damage, MNKs are crazy DD with very little lost, and WAR... well, WAR is the best tank in the game right now - stupidly high damage, plate armor and almost 50% more HP than PLD with non-MP heals (not as self sufficient as PLD, but when you're hitting like a freight train, battles of attrition are rare.)

Finally managed to finish MRD to 50 and completed WAR quest chains and AF. Very special thanks to Draq and Nairod for making this possible. Steel Cyclone is INSANE. I went from level 45 - 49.5 in just under 3 hours in a Stronghold party with 5 of us WAR with SC killing the crap out of beastmen en masse. Tons of fun.

I actually think the crown thing on the PLD AF looks kinda weird, would be cool if they ever made a helm where you can toggle the visor up and down or something.

How does Bard play? From what I've seen, they've actually made it more like COR from XI, where you both support and shoot.

Yeah, the crown-thing looks strange on about half the models. It looks pretty decent on the females and some of the Rogaedyn. It gives you crucifix earrings too...

BRD is actually pretty cool. It doesn't play anything at all like COR. It plays pretty much the same as BRD on FFXI - only you can only do 1 song (out of a whopping 3) atm. You can still run around and put different songs on people if they are far enough away from each other. Thankfully its a casting effect and not silly singing. Outside of the buffs, it plays just like Archer - which is one of the few jobs that doesn't have an auto-attack for its main weapon, so it feels more interactive. COR was very infrequent ranged damage outside of TP skills - they buffed and played mainly in melee because the gun speed was so slow, ammo was too expensive and the standard shot damage was meh. BRD in FFXIV is very much a heavy hitting ranged-only job.

Garuda patch just landed. We finished the level 40 version of the fight before the servers exploded, but upon coming back they had rolled back everyone's credit. So i'll need to run the fight again to get the cut-scenes needed to bookend the combat footage. Till then, here's a vid of the pre-req fight in the Garuda quest chain - it involved you and a little piece of MAGITEK ARMOR !!!1111111